Portable pitching mound



Nov. 18, 1969 J. J. GOEDERS 3,479,028

PORTABLE PITCHING MOUND Filed NOV. 14, 1966 United States Patent 9 M 3,479,028 PORTABLE PITCHING MOUND John J. Goeders, 705 2nd Ave. SE., Altoona, Iowa 50009 Filed Nov. 14, 1966, Ser. No. 594,107 Int. Cl. A63b 65/12, 69/00 US. Cl. 273-25 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The pitching mound in a regulation ball park is elevated substantially over the elevation of the surrounding fiat infield. Junior leaguers and high school teams will frequently convert a playground area into a baseball field which will lack the pitching mound. This puts the pitchers on such teams at some disadvantage in playing on a regulation field because they have not had the ex perience in using a regulation mound.

Thus, one of the principal objects of this invention is to provide a portable pitching mound which may be used on any play field to convert the pitching area to a pitching mound of a regulation ball park.

Another object of this invention is to provide a portable pitching mound which is extremely strong, lightweight and may be quickly secured in place and removed when desired.

Yet another related object of this invention is to provide a portable pitching mound having a generally convex upper surface and being covered with a resilient material.

A further related object of this invention is to provide a portable pitching mound which is hollow and formed from molded Fiberglas to include a depression for the pitching rubber and the pitchers feet. A pitching rubber of resilient material relatively harder than the material covering the Fiberglas may be employed.

A still further related object of this invention is to provide a pitching mound having a depression for the pitching station in which a pitching rubber is positioned wherein the depression merges smoothly at its forward side with the curvature of the pitching mound and the pitching rubber has an elevation corresponding to the exterior surface of the pitching mound thus providing a relatively smooth surface area.

Yet a still further related object of this invention is to provide a portable pitching mound which is formed from molded Fiberglas and includes a depression for the pitchers feet and the pitching rubber; the molded Fiberglas mound being hollow and circular in shape with openings around the peripheral edge for receiving spikes to be driven into the ground to secure the mound in place, and the exterior convex surface of the mound being uniformly convex over its entire area.

A further object of this invention is to provide a portable pitching mound which is simple in design, economical to manufacture and refined in appearance.

These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

This invention consists in the construction, arrangements, and combination of the various parts of the de- 3,479,028 Patented Nov. 18, 1969 vice, whereby the objects contemplated are attained as hereinafter more fully set forth, specifically pointed out in the claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a baseball field utilizing the portable pitching mound of this invention;

BIG. 2 is an enlarged-in-scale perspective view of the pitching mound only on the baseball field;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3--3 in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken along line 44 in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken aloIng line 55 in FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken alo ng line 66 in FIG. 3.

The portable pitching mound of this invention is referred to generally in FIG. 1 by the reference numeral 10 and is shown on a playing field having bases 12, 14 and 16 and the home plate 18. I The portable pitching mound 10 includes a molded Fiberglas body 20 circular in shape and hollow as seen in FIG. 3. A depression 22 is molded into the body 20 to "provide a pitching station at the center of the mound 10? As seen in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, the depression 22 is flat relative to the convex exterior surface of the molded Fiberglas body 20. However, the depression 22 has a forward end 24 which merges smoothly into the curvature of the body member 20 (FIG. 3). A rear end 26 in the depression is provided and includes an abutment shoulder 28 (FIG. 5).

The entire pitching mound exterior surface is covered with a sheet of resilient material 30 which extends completely over the depression 22.

The depression 22 also has side shoulders 32 and 34 which taper forwardly to merge smoothly with the forward end 24 into the convex exterior surface of the body 20.

A pitching plate or rubber 36 of resilient material, however, less resilient than the covering material 30, is secured by bolts 38 to the Fiberglas body 20. The heads of the bolts 38 are received in wells 40 formed in the plate 36 to avoid any protrusions along the upper surface thereof.

It is seen, for example, in FIG. 3 that the rubber or plate 36, although having a substantially fiat upper surface, is substantially coplanar with the upper surface of the convex shell 20. It is also noted that the rubber 36 is placed on the covering material 30 which is between the plate 36 and the rear shoulder 28. Thus the rubber or plate 36 serves to hold the covering material 30 in position in the depression area 22 where the most wear will appear during use.

It is seen in FIG. 2, a series of semicircular in shape depressions 42 are provided around the periphery of the shell 20 and each has an opening 44 in which a threaded anchor bolt 46 is inserted for securing the mound 10 to the ground 48 (FIG. 6). A conventional suction cup or the like (not shown) can be used in place of bolt 46 if the device is to be used indoors.

Thus, it is seen in use that an ordinary flat playing field may be converted into a regulation type field insofar as the pitching mound is concerned by use of the portable pitching mound 10. The mound is positioned at the proper distance from the plates 12, 14, 16 and 18 and the anchors 46 are threaded into the ground. The pitcher may work from the pitching station formed by the depression 22. His foot 50 will be positioned in the depression parallel to the rubber or plate 36 when runners are on base, as seen in FIG. 5. When the pitcher wishes to make a full wind-up, such as when the bases are either empty or loaded, his feet can be placed in the conventional position transversely on the rubber with the toe portion of his forward foot extending into the depression.

The mound of this invention for all practical purposes completely simulates a baseball field having a dirt shape mound. All of the movements of the pitcher may be performed on the portable pitching mound as they would be on a dirt type pitching mound. The forward side of the pitching mound body 20 is shaped to slope downwardly just like a regulation dirt mound and accordingly the pitcher will experience no significant differences in pitching from the portable pitching mound 10 over a conventional dirt mound. The resilient material 30, which is glued or otherwise secured to shell 20, provides a realistic footing for the pitcher. It is also to be appreciated that the convex hollow shape of the Fiberglas body 20 provides an extremely lightweight but correspondingly strong body as the convex shape gives the body extra strength.

Some changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of my portable pitching mound without departing from the real spirit and purpose of my invention, and it is my intention to cover by my claims, and modified forms of structure or use of mechanical equivalents which may be reasonably included within their scope.

I claim:

1. A portable pitching mound, comprising,

a pitching mound body member of molded Fiberglas in the form of a convex shaped shell of substantially uniform thickness wherein it engages a supporting surface only at its peripheral edge, said member provided with an upper surface area, rearward and forward ends, opposite sides and a peripheral edge extending therearound,

a pitching rubber on the upper surface area of said mound body,

said ends and sides sloping downwardly and outwardly to said peripheral edge to form an inclined surface adjacent thereto,

said upper surface area laterally and rearwardly of and immediately adjacent to said pitching rubber being at an elevation substantially equal to that of said pitching rubber so that there is a substantially even and uninterrupted surface on said pitching mound as defined by the upper surface of said pitching rubber and the said upper surface area immediately rearwardly of and laterally of said pitching rubber, said body member having a flat depression area forwardly of said pitching rubber, said depression area at its rearward end having a maximum width and tapering forwardly to a narrower width at its front end merging smoothly with the upper surface area of the shell at said front end.

2. The structure of claim 1 wherein securing means are mounted on said body member for securing said body member to a supporting surface.

3. The structure of claim 1 wherein a resilient material extends over the entire upper surface of said Fiberglas.

4. The structure of claim 3 wherein'said body member has openings along its peripheral edge, to engage means for securing said body member to a supporting surface.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,156,469 5/ 1939 Boltz 27325 2,792,164 5/ 1957 Caufiiel. 3,236,520 2/ 1966 Friedman.

ANTON O. OECHSLE, Primary Examiner T. BROWN, Assistant Examiner 

